A respiration system with an operating unit and with a respirator has become known from DE 195 00 529 C2. The prior-art respirator has an inspiration line and an expiration line in order to supply a patient with breathing gas and to remove expired gas. Fresh breathing gas is fed into the inspiration line via a breath flow regulating valve. For this, the breath flow regulating valve has preset values of a ramp generator for the breathing gas profile to be set. A control unit, which is connected to the breath flow regulating valve and a flow-measuring device for determining the breathing gas flow, contains in a memory suggested values for respiration parameters, which can be polled via the operating unit. The operating unit has for this purpose a display unit in the form of output sectors, via which variables that vary over time, such as the respiration pressure and the respiration gas flow or even selected forms of respiration are displayed. Settings of individual respiration parameters can be made by means of an input unit in the form of individual input sectors. The display unit and the input unit are imaged in terms of software on an interactive flat screen. A respiration parameter is activated by touching a corresponding segment on the flat screen.
A respirator, in which sensors arranged in pairs are provided for individual breathing gas parameters as a monitoring means in the inspiration line and in the expiration line, is known from DE 27 50 450 C3. The measured values of the individual sensors in the inspiration line are compared with those in the expiration line for calibration purposes in order to compensate drift effects. To adjust the sensors, the breathing gas flow can be deflected by means of individual valves such that the breathing gas being supplied by a gas mixer directly enters the sensor arrangement in the expiration line from the sensor arrangement in the inspiration line. A sensor defect can be inferred from a significant deviation between the measured values of sensors of the same type.
The drawback of the prior-art respirators is that operating and monitoring measures can be taken only directly at the device.